Overedge sewing-machine.



PTO-724,110. PATBNTED MAR. 31, 1903,

G. KEYSER & J. M. WEBER.

OVEREDGE SEWING MACHINE.

' APPLICATION FILED AUG. 17, 1901. no MODEL. a sHBE'w-sHEET 1.

Witnesses I nventorS Attorhey.

No. 724,110. BATENTED MAR.31 ,1903.'

V e. KEYSER & J. M. WEBER.

OVEREDGE SEWING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AU}. 17. 1901. no MODEL. v s sums-sum a.

(Si GL ttorney.

No. 724,110. PA'IENTED MAR. 31, 1903.

GJKEYSER & J. M. WEBER.

OVEREDGE SEWING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED Aueln. 1901.

no MODEL. Y a sums-sum a.

' & M y

10 16 220 I Witnesses. Inven tQn S UNITED STATES;

P TENT OFFICE.

GEORGE KEYSER AND JACOB M; whens, on PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYL- VANIA,ASSIGNORS TO JOHN W. HEPWORTH, on PHILADELPHIA,

PENNSYLVANIA.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 724,1 10, dated March31, 1903.

No. 72,329- (No model.)

@riginal application filed September 15, 1900, Serial No. 30,092--Divided and this application filed August 17, 1901. Serial To 00% whomit may concern/.-

Be it known that we, GEORGE KEYSER and i JACOB M. WEBER, citizens of theUnited States, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia and Stateof Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inOveredge Sewing-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The present application is a division of the application filed by usSeptember 15, 1900, Serial No. 30,092, for certain improvements inoveredge sewing-machines.

The subject of this case relates more especially to the feed mechanismof such machines, our objects being, first, to provide novel mechanismfor intermittently rotating the feed disks or cups and for regulatingthe movement of the latter; secondly, to provide novel means forseparating said disks or cups and at the same time releasing the threadsfrom tension, whereby the fabric, with its threads, may be readilyremoved from the machine; thirdly, to provide a novel construction ofdevices for uncurling the edges of the fabric during their passage tothe feed (16-; vices, and, finally, to provide various novell featuresof construction and combinations of parts, which will be hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

In the drawings, Fig-urel is a side elevation, partly in section, of'anoveredge sewingmachine embodying our invention. Fig. 2 is an endelevation thereof, also partly in section. Fig. 3 is an elevation of theuncurler?" 'd-etached. Fig. 4 is an edge view thereof, partly insection. Fig. 5 is a sectional detail as on the line 0 of Fig. 3. Fig. 6is a similar detail showing parts of the mechanism for actuating theclutch-disks. Fig. 7 is a sectional detail as on the line at d of Fig.6. Fig. 8 is a plan of the clutch device, partly in section. Fig. 9 is avertical section as on the line e e of Fig. 8.

The main frame comprises the bed-plate 1 and the standards 2 and 3thereon. The bedplate is preferably hinged at its rearward 'edge, as at4, to a basal casing 5, in which the depending parts of the mechanismare covered and concealed when the machine is in working condition. Byswinging the bedplate upwardly the underlying parts thereon will beexposed and readily accessible, as oocasion may require.

The main shaft 6 has its bearings-in appropriate boxes in the lateralmembers of the standard 3 and is provided with a drivingpulley 7,whereby it may be driven from a suitable source of power.

The usual feed'cups or disks 8 9, by and be- I tween which the edges ofthe fabric to be united are progressively fed to the stitchingmechanism, are supported upon vertical shafts 10 11, mounted at theforward end of the bed-plate. The shaft 10 is journaled in a column 12,rising from the bed-plate, while the other shaft 11 is affixed at itslower end to an oscillatory frame 13, mounted below the plate, for apurpose below described.

The disk 9 is provided with an elongated hub 14, which extends throughan opening in the bed-plate andcarries a gear-wheel15,

which coacts with a corresponding gear 16 on the shaft 10, whereby thelatter, with its disk, and the hublt, with its disk, may be concurrentlydriven in opposite directions to each other. o

Afdxed to the shaft 10 at a point below its gear-16 is a drum 17, uponthe hub 18 of which are loosely mountedtwo rocking levers 1.9 20,disposed above and below the drum, respectively. The inner arms of theselevers are bifurcated to afiord jaws 21, which embrace the opposingedges of the drum, and the openings 22 in said arms are slightlyelongated in opposite directions to each other.

The outer arm of the lever 20 is extended and is pivoted at or near itsfree extremity to a post 23,depending from the bed-plate. The outer armof the upper lever is formed with an up-projecting lug24, provided witha laterally-disposed ball 25, which is fitted to the socketed end 26 ofa link 27. The opposite end ofv the latter is equipped with a pivotstud28, which is slidingly fitted to a vertical slot 29 in an oscillatoryarm 30, pivoted at its upper end to the standard 3, as at 31. This armhas a rectangular opening 32 therein for the reception of an eccentric33 on the main shaft,whereby d uring the rotation of the latter said armis oscillated, corresponding motion being transmitted by the linkconnection to the lever 19. During the oscillations of this lever thejaws thereof in their forward eccentric movement, due to the slotconnection with the hub of the drum, bite the opposing portions of thedrum and correspondingly advance the latter, the jaws of the lowerlever, owing to the opposite disposition of its slot, permitting theadvance movement of the drum by the lever 19, yet preventing itsrearward movement during the back strokes of the latter lever. The lowerlever thus serves as a back-stop. By this construction it will be seenthat the drum 17 and its shaft 10 are intermittently rotated and that inconsequence the two feed-disks are simultaneously impelled.

As a simple and efficient means whereby the step-by-step movement of thefeed-disks may be regulated, so as to correspondingly determine the feedof the fabric therebetween and perforce the length of the stitches, weprovide a means whereby the pivot-stud 28 may be adjusted longitudinallyof the slotted arm, the position of such stud'in relation to the axis ofthe arm determining the throw of the clutch-lever. To this end wedispose adjacent to the link27 an arm 34, which is carried by avertically-movable rod 35, extending, through the standard 3. This rodis provided with lateral setscrews 36, which extend through a verticalslot 37 in the standard, so that if such screw be properly manipulatedthe rod maybe loosened and vertically adjusted and then be secured inits position of adjustment. The free end of the arm 3st lies adjacent tothe pivot-stud 28 and is provided with a horizontal slot or recess 38 toreceive the extended end of said stud. Hence when the arm 34: isvertically adjusted the stud will be raised or lowered therebylongitudinally of the oscillatory arm, the slot or recess in the arm 34permitting the free horizontal movementof the stud as it is actuated bythe arm 30.

The needle 39 is horizontally reciprocated across the bite of the twofeed-disks, so as to penetrate the interposed edges of the fabric to beunited. In the mechanism herein illustrated this needle is carried bythe free end of a bar40, which is fitted to horizontal guides etl on thestandard 2. On the baris a lug 42, which is connected by means of a link43 with the upper end of an oscillatory frame 44. This frame is fulcrumed on a transverse shaft 45, supported by brackets on the under side ofthe bed-plate, and is provided with a pair of vertical members 46, whichembrace an cecentric 47 on the main shaft, whereby during the rotationofthe latter the frame is contin uously reciprocated.

The thread on its way to the needle passes throughaspring-controlledtension device 61,

supported on a bracket 62 at the rear of the machine, thence througheyes 63 in the vertical members of a guide-bracket 6t and eyes 65 in thefree end of a take-up lever 66, interposed between such members, thenceto the needle. The take-up lever is pivoted at its rearward end betweenlugs 67 on the standard 2 of the main frame and is connected at a pointbetween its ends with the upper end of a rod 68, which is coupled at itslower end by means of a strap 69 with an eccentric 70 on the main shaft,whereby during the opera tion of the machine the said lever iscontinuously oscillated in a manner to take up the slack thread duringthe reciprocations of the needle.

The looper 71 is arranged above the feeddisks and is actuated in respectto the needle to accomplish the requisite enchainment of the looper andneedle threads for the formation of the stitches upon the edges of thefabric. The looper has, as usual, a rising-andfalling motion, aforward-and-back motion, and also aslight lateral motion, the wholebeing properly timed relatively to the reciprocations of the needle.

The thread 83 on its way to the looper passes through aspring-controlled tension device 84, arranged adjacent to the tensiondevice 61, above referred to, thence through eyes 85 inlaterally-extending lugs 86 87 on the take-up and looper levers,respectively, thence to the looper. Hence during the actuation of thelooper the slack of the looper-thread is taken up by the oscillatingtake-up lever.

The tension devices for the needle and looper threads are identical witheach other, both in construction and operation. Each of these devicescomprises a pair of superposed disks 88, through which extends avertical rod 89, slidingly fitted to a perforated boss 90 in the bracket62. The lower disk rests upon the boss, while a shoulder9l on the rodbears upon the upper disk, the rod being maintained yieldingly depressedby a spiral spring 92, which encircling the rod bears against the underside of the bracket and against a shoulder 93 on the lower extremity ofthe rod. The disks being thus maintained yieldingly in contact with eachother exert sufficient tension upon the thread passing between the same.It will be seen that if the rod be raised against the pressure of thespring the thread will be released.

As above stated, the shaft 11, which supports the outer feed-disk 9, iscarried by an oscillatory frame 13, mounted below the bedplate. Thisframe comprises a transverse bar 94, provided at its respective endswith rearwardly and upwardly projecting lugs 95, which are pivoted todepending lugs 96 on the bed-plate. The bar is also provided at one endthereof with a depending extension 97, which is connected by means of alink 98 with the shorter arm of a bell-crank lever 99, pivoted to adepending lug 100 near the rearward end of the bed plate. The lever ismaintained in a normal position by a suitably-disposed spring 101. Onthe pivot-stud 102 of the lever is a rearwardly-extending toe 103, uponwhich rests the lower end of a vertically-movable rod 104, that extendsthrough a guide-lug 105 on the standard 2 of the main frame and throughan orifice in the bed-plate. On the upper end of this rod is across-piece 106, that lies directly below the rods 89 of the two tensiondevices. By this construction it will be seen that if the longer arm of.the lever 99 be depressed against the action of the spring the frame 13Will be tilted, so as to incline the shaft 11 and throw the overlyingfeed-disk away from the inner feed-disk in a manner to free theinterposed fabric and that at the same time the too 103 being raisedwill elevate the rod 104, with its cross-piece, and thereby lift therods 89 and-free the threads in the tension devices, whereupon thefabric, with the connected threads, may be readily drawn from themachine.

The lever 99 may be depressed by means of a suitable treadle (not shown)connected therewith by a rod 107.

It will be observed that the axis of oscillation of the frame 13 isrearward of the vertical axis of the shaft 11, so that when the frame istilted to incline the latter the feeddisk thereon will be swung in adownward arc to lie below the path of the needle. Hence if the needleshould happen to be reciprocated when the disks are separated there willbe no liability of injurious contact of the needle with the outer disk.

The device for uncurling the edges of the fabric as they are deliveredto the bite of the feed-disks differs but slightly from priorconstructions, the novel features residing in projections or abutmentsby means of which the proper delivery of the curled edges of the fabricto the uncurling members is insured even though the fabric be improperlyguided by the attendant.

The uncurling device comprises a divisionarm 108, depending from thefree end of a horizontal rod or shaft 109, extending from a bracket 110on the main frame. The lower end of this arm lies just in advance of thebite of the feed-disks and is made quite thin and extended forwardly inrespect to this bite, as indicated at 111. The device also comprises twodepending arms 112, arranged on the respective sides of the arms 108 andhinged at their upper ends to the latter. The lower ends of theselateral arms also lie just in advance of the bite of the feedcup, andthey are made quite thin and extended forwardly, the extensions beingdefiected laterally, as at 113, and being provided with lateraluncurling members 114. Between the two lateral arms is a spring 115,which tends normally to separate them from the central member, each ofthe arms being provided with a set-screw 116,whereby it may be adjustedtoward and from such memberfor the purpose of regulating the interveningspace. As usual, the edges of the fabric on their passage to thefeed-disks are guided be tween the lower flattened end of the centralarm and the deflected ends of the lateral arms, respectively, so thatthe uncurling members on the latter will progressively receive andstraighten the opposing curled edges of the fabric. To insure the properguidance of the edges to these uncurling members, we provide the centralarm with a transverse pin 117, which affords abutments directlyforwardly of the members 114:. As the fabric is fed inward it bearsagainst the opposing abutments and is positively directed in a straightline to the uncurling members, and this though the delivery of thefabric by the attendant be somewhat irregular.

We claim-- 1. In an overedge sewing-machine, the combination with thefeed-disks and their shafts, of devices forintermittently rotating oneof said shafts, a longitudinally-slotted oscillating arm, means foroscillating said arm, a link pivotally connected with said devices, apivotpin extending through said link and the slot in the arm, avertically-adjustable arm pro.

vided with a slot or recess into which the pin extends, and means forvertically adjusting said arm, substantially as described.

2. In an overedge sewing-machine, the com bination with the needle andlooper mechanism, tension devices for the needle and looper threads, thefeed-disks, their shafts or supports, and means for moving one of saidshafts or supports relatively to the other and for opening the tensiondevices, substantially as described.

3. In an overedge sewing-machine, the combination with the needle andlooper mechanisms, tension devices for the needle and looper threads,the feed-disks, their shafts or supports, a movable frame for one ofsaid shafts or supports, a lever, a link connection between the same andsaid frame, and connections between said lever and the tension devices,substantially as described' I 4. In an overedge'sewing-machine, thecombination with the feed-disks, of the curling device adjacent thereto,including the central division member, the lateral members withuncurling portions, and studs or abutments on the centralmember'arranged in close relation to said uncurling portions,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in presence of twowitnesses.

GEORGE KEYSER. JACOB M. WEBER. Witnesses:

ALBERT P. MYERs, ANDREW V. GRoUPn.

